Stroll around the neighborhood: Finding joy on the South Side

The Brown and White took a stroll around the neighborhood and spoke to community members about living and working on the South Side. 

Tammy Pagat

Pagat is the owner of Lathers and Lotions, a locally sourced handmade soap business.

Q: How long have you been operating this business?

TP: I started making soaps for my family 20 years ago. Then five years ago, when my husband retired, I opened up this business.

Q: What’s your favorite part about your job?

TP: I love getting out and talking to people honestly. You guys are all here, and I enjoy talking to college students.

Q: What’s special about what you do?

TP: All of my soaps are made from goat milk. I work with all local farmers, and I’m also friends with a lot of them. Goat milk has a lot of vitamins in it, and it is also very fatty with a lot of oils, so it is very good for your skin.

Q: What brings you joy?

TP: I really just like to create things. I love to get creative, and you can get really creative with soaps, colors, scents and themes and things like that.

Q: What do you think of South Bethlehem?

TP: When I was (first) here, there weren’t this many buildings. When I came back here, there were suddenly a lot of buildings, and the community seems to have improved a lot. There is a lot up on East Third Street that wasn’t there.

Joshua Delva

Delva works at Flour Shop, a local bakery that has a stand at the Bethlehem farmer’s market.

Q: Why did you choose to start working at Flour Shop?

JD: I was looking for a part-time job in high school, and I just came to fall in love with baking and all that stuff. Seeing how the breads and pastries were made was so interesting.

Q: Do you like working the farmer’s market stand?

JD: Yeah, I like the community, and I like chatting with people. I also like being outdoors, especially since the weather is nice in the summer and springtime. 

Q: What do you love about the South Side community?

JD: What I love about the community is how friendly it is. I like to talk and chat with people. I feel like wherever else you go, you don’t get that same homey, friendly environment where you can feel comfortable walking around on the streets and sidewalks.

Q: Is there anything you’d change about the South Side community?

JD:  I don’t really think there is much I would change about the community. I feel like it’s clean, friendly and overall inviting.

Q: Is there anything you want to tell the South Side community?

JD: Be happy. Spread joy and love. Take things slow, even though it’s hard. Nothing is that serious. Just enjoy life as much as you can.

Anthony Cruz

Cruz is an electrical apprentice who skateboards on the South Side in his free time. 

Q: What do you do for work?

AC: I went to trade school in New York, and now I’m an electrical apprentice. It was hard at first. It’s a little scary messing with electricity, of course. But after a while you get used to it and it’s pretty cool. 

Q: How long have you been skateboarding?

AC: I started about 20 years ago, but I just got back into it about a year ago. I grew up here, and this skate park has been here since I was younger. 

Q: What got you into skateboarding?

AC: My dad. Watching him skateboard and growing up in New York around a lot of skaters. I thought it was so cool. I thought it was magic. 

Q: How has the skating community served you over the years?

AC: The local skate shop Homebase does a lot for the kids in the community. They gave me my first skateboard a long time ago. They host a “Go Skate Day” event, and everybody just comes to have fun. It’s really important for kids to have something to do to stay out of trouble. Skateboarding kept me out of trouble. 

Q: Do you have a favorite memory of skateboarding in South Side Bethlehem?

AC: Watching people doing crazy tricks down the stair set. I could never do it. The local legends are so good and they hit that stair set every time. 

Daniel Correra

Correra grew up in Bethlehem and visits occasionally to spend his free time here.

Q: What do you do for work?

DC: I have my associate’s degree in psychology, but I am a barber right now. I am going back to school in October to get my Commercial Driver’s License to be a truck driver. 

Q: Do you have any hobbies?

DC: I love boxing. It’s kind of an art that made me learn about insecurities and discipline. It’s more competition than anything, but it’s just relaxing and it’s healthy. It sets in a routine, and it’s just a good hobby.

Q: What have you noticed is different about the community from when you grew up here?

DC: When I was younger, we used to have little projects — leagues and stuff like that — for basketball and for the kids, like football. They don’t have that anymore. 

Q: Do you wish there was more in the area that caters to community sports?

DC: There should be, especially around this environment. There’s a lot of kids. I see a lot of kids and teenagers around here, and it’s just easy to get sidetracked or into drugs even. There’s just a lot of bad ways to go.

Q: What are your biggest concerns for the community?

DC: There is a lot of poverty and drug activity. There’s not really much to do. People become products of their environment. 

Q: What do you think can be done to help the community?

DC: People have to learn and take accountability for their actions. You have to learn from life lessons, you know? Not everything’s going to be handed to you, so you have to decide to change. Drugs and poverty are a problem around here, but there’s always a way to strive for better and to understand that’s not the right way.